Ben's glasses, Noah's cello

Ben has new glasses. They look smart on him, and he looks smart in them. He's so happy. He lost his last pair some time ago, and we had to wait until this year to get the new pair. (insurance reasons) After we left, Ben very happy to see so well, I was reminded of my own happy sight moment. I was 13 or 14, and had "lost" my 5th grade glasses a couple of years before. My eye-sight worsened to the point that my 6th grade teacher warned me, at least twice: "If you don't get glasses soon, you'll be blind by the time you're 20!" I hid my need for the glasses from my parents. They were distracted at the time, too, as they were going through a separation and later, a divorce. So, if I was careful, and I was, I could get away without wearing the glasses I hated so much. By age 13-1/2 or 14, I had reached a point of desperation in near-sightedness, and told my mother, "Mom, take me to the eye doctor - I can't see good at all!" She did, and he was taken back by my poor eyesight, and the fact that it had not been corrected for so long. When he showed my mom how blurry my vision was, she was also shocked. But as bad as it was, I had to be the one to wear the glasses, and Mom knew that. She knew that my other glasses had gone missing, but I never complained. Somehow, I slipped between the cracks as far as the school eye tests and my mom knowing the truth. (I probably never gave her the letter containing my test results.) Anyway, I'll never forget the thrill of seeing correctly for the first time in 3 years. I loved my glasses, and wore them non-stop. A year later, I started wearing contact lenses. Good sight is a huge blessing. I sometimes wonder about near-sighted people hundreds of years ago, and how hard their bad eye-sight.

Noah takes his cello lesson tonight. His teacher is very pleased with his progress. He can now play five variations on Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Also, he knows Scotland's Burning, Hot Cross Buns, and of course, Ants. His teacher is going to teach him Allegro for the upcoming Suzuki area recital, held in a large local orchestra hall. Her students, ages 5 - 16, will all play this piece, with Noah and the other little boy, our front. I'm really looking forward to that. I've already told all the grandparents about it.